Paul Pogo - Reel Therapy

I am in the same boat as you, figuratively speaking! When looking to buy a boat, the wife said it had to be "family-friendly," NOT just a fishing boat! Challenge accepted! Read on: My 21' Steiger Craft Miami has a 3-sided cuddy cabin with canvas/isinglass back curtain, which is great in the early Spring and keeps me getting drenched in the rain. I have the boat set up to quickly & easily convert from fishing-friendly to family-friendly, or vice-versa. In her Fishing mode, I run 2 manually operated downriggers on rod holder mounting plates, with 2 rod holders mounted to each downrigger. The second rod holder can be used with Stacker Clips to double my downrigger opportunities, or in the Spring run 2 DR's & 2 surface lines. A trident rod holder on both gunwales holds 3 rods each for lines to the Big Board Planers. 2 quick-release Down-East style rod holders are mounted on each gunwale for dipsey diver rods. My Planer Board mast & motors are located on the cabin roof with a quick release mount. Conversion to Family mode takes less than 10 minutes with someone on the ground to assist, or vice versa. I pull the downriggers, remove the Down-East and the Trident rod holders, then disconnect the Planer Board mast & motors. Now she is family-friendly! Problem solved! My wife is happy, and I am happy, too! Tight Lines!

I bought a Mr. Heat Propane stand alone for around $100 before Christmas, so my wife got me a heater for the boat...... either that or a Cabela's/Bass Pro Gift Card. Actually, I used it more than a couple times working on the boat and trailer. It's stored indoors, but not heated indoor storage. Absolutely thrilled you are interested in fishing together sometime. My friends that fish, I'll be lucky to get any of them to go until some really warm days in April. I'm probably going to trolling solo most of the time, and occasionally with my wife. She's not a fan of the cold, and legally can't fish until April 1, when her 2024 license is valid. She never fished before. But she has watched me fish when we have went camping. Buying a 2023 license would only be worth the price if she fished every day the rest of the month, and that isn't going to happen. So, there is always have room for a fishing buddy. I'll let you know when I get the 2024 shakedown cruise behind me and see where that leads (what else needs replacement or fixing?). After that, anytime you feel the urge, let me know and we'll make it happen. My phone is 219-306-1225. The picture of the planer motors I posted has changed slightly. I reconfigured the motors on the bracket so a quick release mount can be attached. The post was a picture taken immediately after removing it from the box.

You have a minimum of $1000 worth of spoons with 240! That is based on pricing them between $4-$5 each, assuming the spoons are in good condition. New spoons are running around $7-$13, depending on size and brand. And J-plugs, which aren't easy to find new any longer, are worth at least $5 each or offer the lot of 17 for $70-75, depending on their condition and if they are complete with harnesses. The best advice I can offer where you won't get any disagreements with estimates is do your own appraisal of value. Go to E-bay and search each general item (i.e., spoons; lures; etc.). You should find items similar to those you are offering for sale and can get a relative feel for their value. Just trying to help you get the most for what you have to offer.

Sorry, forgot to attach the pics.

Wow! Mind Blown on the subject of line. Great info; just took a while to digest and absorb. Completely new to braid, lead core and copper. No experience, so trying a little of everything spreading it across 16 reels. Planning on making and attaching leaders and setting up the terminal tackle over the weekend. Will apply the info you provided, as it is a great starting point that gives me a leg up on the learning curve. I can easily run 10 lines with 3 off each Planer Board, 2 on downriggers and a stacker on each dr. I also have a 5-stand rocket launcher on the roof, which is basically a 5-stand rod holder. It's been a minute since I piloted a boat while trolling lines, so I'm not going into this being too ambitious. As it is, I'll be lucky if I can find someone to go out with me half the time. My wife really isn't into fishing, but her licensed presence onboard allows me 3 more lines in the water and 5 more fish. However, she works during the week, and I am retired. Trying to avoid the Weekend Warriors. Another Wow! We both have boats with similarities. Both 21', Deep V, OB propelled, and trailering. Very Sweet! Yours is center console, though. Do you have an Isinglass/canvas enclosure for your helm, for the colder days on the Lake? Do you ever fish further South in Indiana waters? I'm planning on buying a Michigan license for later in the season when the fish move deeper. And I want to keep the wife happy, so we were looking at taking some fun trips up the coast of Michigan to New Buffalo, Saugatuck, and Holland. And at some point, I just know I'm going to want to put a line in the water. Michigan is a great outdoor State! I'm still waiting on getting mine back from the Honda Marine repair shop. My engine has 2400 hrs on it, so I bit the bullet and had them give me a full assessment, along with all the preseason maintenance. The news was very good. The previous owner took excellent care of the motor, and it should last another 2400 to 3600 hours, if maintained properly. I should be getting her back this week or early next. Then I have installs to perform. Maybe in the water by March 7. If you ever feel like heading to Indiana, you are more than welcome to join me. At some point in the season when the fish move further North, maybe I could join you. Beats the hell out of trailering a boat that far! Don't know about you, but I only get 10-11 mpg when pulling my boat. It's a beast weight-wise at 4800# without the engine, and all the other add-ons and gear. Sending some pics of the Planer Boards and motor unit I will eventually being running. Take care. Let's keep in touch! I've learned quite a bit from our discussions. Thank you. Paul

Dave, Thank you for sharing your experience regarding line. I've known about zebra mussels for over 25 yrs, and being in the shellfish family, it makes sense they clean the water (like clams, oysters, etc). What I didn't do in my mind was the connect those thoughts. Namely, they clean the water, line is now more visible. Duh! As I previously mentioned, I have little knowledge regarding line choices. What has been your experience with Braid? Braid with Lead Core? Copper Braid? I am experimenting with all 3 to see what works. I did receive my spools of fluorocarbon and fluorocarbon leader over the weekend. And unless there is some sort of gauge to discern the difference, I cannot see or feel it. Both are Clear, 30 lb., appear identical when put to a blind test, share the same diameter at 0.020", and both have the same stiffness/suppleness. The Fluoro line is a 200 yd spool of Suffix Advance; and the 100 yd spool of Fluoro Leader is Seaguar Blue Label DSF. Since I cannot discern any difference, I think I now have 300 yds of Fluoro I can use as leaders. lol Again, thank you for relating your knowledge and experience. Typically, fisherman don't like to share too much info, play it close to the vest and trust no one! However, with the plethora of Perch, Salmon and Trout in the Lake, there is more than plenty for all. A few last questions, if you will... Tell me all about your boat. (I know, I'm opening a can of worms!) Do you trailer or have a slip? Which is your Home Port, and have you been out Salmon fishing yet? I am still a week to 10 days away from being ready. Boat is coming back from OB Mechanic on Wednesday or Thursday, and I have installs to complete before launching. Nice communicating with you. It is always good to make new friends with common interests! Paul

Sent a text to your number just after 3 pm. Because today was so nice, thought you might be on water; so didn't want to step on your fun. Got my Lead together, too!

Dave, Why do you use fluorocarbon leader on mono lines? Why not just run mono? I have 4 reels loaded with mono and were planning on using them for my surface lines for Coho. Back in the late 70's early 80's, before the rise of Braid, wire, lead and copper, our reels were loaded with mono. And we put our share of fish in the box, losing a few but none because the line broke. Into the 90's and beyond, my Salmon fishing was limited to Charter's for lack of a boat, or friends with a boat that actually want to go out and fish!. So, I never really kept up with all the changes in line; so I am ignorant on that subject. Right now, I have so many irons in the fire, it's not a wabbit hole I want to get into. This is going to be a year of learning and relearning, which was expected. Just itching to get that first fish of 2024 in the box, and any advice or helpful hints along the way are much appreciated. Paul

Dave, Thank you for the info. Finding out Leader Length is quite the conundrum to decipher. In YouTube videos, everyone has a different opinion on leader length. A lot depends on how you have your line deployed, whether it be dipsy divers, jet divers, down-rigger, then add spin doctors or flashers, and let's not forget shallow diver flat lines. I've seen or read about lengths from 4 foot to as much as 50 feet. Most seem to settle on 3 to 4 wingspan lengths (approximatlet 18 - 24 ft), as you measure out the leader and some line loss from tying the FG Knot. I'm going to be working on leaders this weekend, so I am going to make several, but in different lengths and see what works best for my situation. 20-30 foot sounds like a sweet spot, so will make several. Thanks again for the recommendation. Paul

That sounds like a good plan. I need to gather up my lead. I got pieces scattered here, there and everywhere in my garage. Will get in touch with you later today. My number is 219-306-1225. Paul

Wow! Now that is thinking outside the box, and I like it! Yes, some photo posts would be great! Where is your home port? From what I surmise, we are around the same age (64-65). Would love to meet you in person for a beer (or three) and talk Boats, Salmon fishing and give you some of this Lead because you have been providing some great advice! I do appreciate you sharing; however, sharing is a two-way street. Since I presently don't have much to offer in terms of Sage advice, I do have a small cache of Lead I'm willing to share with only you, since I already committed to purchasing 2 - 10 lbers. At most I will only need enough to make a couple back up balls. I can always get more Lead.......admittedly yes, I'm a Scrapper!